This invention relates to plumbing fixtures for penal institutions and more particularly to means for preventing flooding and consequent damage from obstruction of the waste outlet thereof.
Penal institutions provide cells for the inmates or prisoners, each cell usually being equipped with a plumbing fixture that is a combination water closet and lavatory, preferably wall mounted. The lavatory usually consists of a fixed bowl or basin with a faucet providing running water, plus a drain pipe for disposal of waste, all of which may be used by the inmate for washing the hands and face. The water closet or toilet of the combination unit is a fixture consisting typically of a water-flushed bowl with a toilet seat that is used for urination and defecation.
One of the problems of providing the combination unit described above for the convenience of the inmates is that one or more inmates may attempt to cause damage to the institution by flooding it by overflowing one or both of the bowls of the combination unit. This is frequently accomplished by obstructing the waste outlet or drain pipe and adjusting the valve controlling the flow of water into the unit for continuous flow, with the object of admitting a greater volume of water than can be drained out via the waste outlet. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a combination unit of the type set forth which will defeat attempts to cause overflowing and consequent damage to the institution.
Although it is known from prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,815,384 and 2,991,481 to provide plumbing fixtures with overflow systems, these have not resulted in commercially available fixtures which are entirely satisfactory.